Another award from Disney’s Shine On campaign, goes to the Coalition for the Homeless. While at my previous employer, we designed the website for the Coalition for the Homeless, so I am grateful to see them rewarded for their tremendous efforts.
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Press Release
Shining a spotlight on services for homeless children in our region, the Walt Disney World Resort recognized the Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida with its top Disney’s Helping Kids Shine Grants honor – the Bob Allen Outstanding Community Service Award – for the second year in a row.
Mickey Mouse, along with Walt Disney World Resort president Meg Crofton, Allen family members and other Disney dignitaries arrived at the Coalition’s facilities on Monday with a prize patrol to award $60,000 to the non-profit’s child development programs which aim to instill values such as trust, honesty, integrity, responsibility, personal power and self-esteem.
“It’s humbling and a great honor to be recognized for our work with families,” said Brent Trotter, Executive Director of the Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida. “Families with children are the fastest-growing portion of the homeless population in Central Florida today. We’ve created a wide variety of services to meet the unique needs of the growing number of children who call the Coalition home, and are happy to have the support of Disney in our mission.”
Disney’s Helping Kids Shine Grants celebrates those who commit their time and talent to making a difference in the lives of Central Florida’s children. One of its top awards – the Bob Allen Outstanding Community Service Award – honors the late Bob Allen, who started his career at Disneyland in 1955 and ended his tenure with a decade-long period as vice president of Walt Disney World Resort. After his death in 1987, Allen’s family formed an endowment fund that assists local social service, environmental and humanitarian organizations.
During the next two weeks, Disney will send prize patrols across Central Florida to surprise, reward and recognize a total of 34 Disney’s Helping Kids Shine Grants recipients chosen by a panel of judges made up of Central Florida community leaders and Walt Disney World Cast Members. Prize patrol reports and pictures will be posted on www.shineontoday.com so you can follow along on the journey across Central Florida and track the total giving.
To learn more about the Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida, visit: http://www.centralfloridahomeless.org/.
Wrapping it up
During my time in the mouse house, I was able to see first-hand how much Disney’s Castmembers cared about their community. The company may be a huge multi-national corporation, but it is staffed by people who take pride in their communities and actively seek out ways to lift all boats.
It’s funny, in this picture are 2 people whom I can proudly say I worked for during my time at Disney: Bob Allen and Meg Crofton. Both of them taught me a lot about the company during my tenure and they continue to do their part to make Central Florida a great place to live. Congratulations to all associated with these efforts.
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